Egypt

General Information
Business Hours
Business & social hints
Climate
Customs
Health
Immigration & Passport
Useful Contacts

General Information

Capital City:: Cairo
Population:: 83 million
Area:: 386,660 square miles
Language:: Arabic, English, French, Spanish
Electricity:: 220V AC 50Hz
Direct Dial:: 20
Driving:: Driving is on the left. International Driving Permit required
Currency:: Egyptian Pound (EGP 1 = 100 Piastres)

Business Hours

Bank:: 0830-1400 Sun-Thur
Office:: 0900-1500 Sat-Thur
Shops:: 0900-1900 Tue-Wed & Fri-Sat, 0900-2000 Mon & Thur (winter), 0900-1230 & 1600-2000 (except Mon & Thur)(summer)
Public Holidays:: 2010 7 Jan *Coptic Christmas Day, 26 Feb Birth of the Prophet, 25 Apr Sinai Liberation Day (Sinai only), 28 Apr *Sham el-Nassim (Coptic Easter), 1 May Labour Day, 23 Jul National Day, 11 Sep *Coptic New Year, 6 Oct Armed Forces Day, 10 Sep -13 Sep Bairam Feast (End of Ramadan), 16 Nov -17 Nov Grand Feast, 7 Dec Islamic New Year. Note: * These holidays are not official, although Coptic Christians may observe them. Dates may vary according to the lunar calendar

Business and social hints

General:: Women should dress conventionally. A headscarf may be useful if visiting a religious or more traditional area. Business is conducted in Arabic, many executives speak English or French. Business cards to have Arabic translation on reverse side. Islamic conventions apply. At meetings it is polite to drink coffee or tea, when offered. Smoking is becoming unacceptable in government and some private offices. Alcohol is available in most major hotels, cafe-style bars and international restaurants. On social occasions dress as for business meetings unless otherwise indicated
Tipping:: Service charges are normally added to restaurant & hotel bills, however additional tips around 5% are customary. Tips for taxis are around 10%
Clothing:: Lightweights or tropical during summer with warmer clothes for winter and cooler evenings
Emergency Services:: Police: 122 (Cairo), 22147 (Aswan), 960151-122 (Alexandria), 23929 (Suez). Fire: 125 (Cairo). Ambulance: 123 (Cairo)
Hotel Classification:: Hotels and holiday villages throughout Egypt are officially graded from 1 to 5 star but the standard is significantly lower than that of equivalent European star ratings. 1- and 2-star properties are unlikely to be used by British tour operators and are best suited to people prepared to "rough it".

Apart from along the Mediterranean coast Egypt's climate is nearly entirely desert. The winter period (Nov-Mar) on the Mediterranean coast can be variable although it is usually warm and sunny, summers are hot but temperatures are tempered by strong sea breezes. In the south summer temperatures can be intense, however, the low humidity makes the heat more bearable and winters are dry and sunny

Cairo

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Maximum Temperature °C	18	21	24	28	33	35	36	35	32	30	26	20
Minimum Temperature °C	8	9	11	14	17	20	21	22	20	18	14	10
Average Humidity (mornings) %	68	64	63	55	50	55	65	69	67	67	68	70
Average Humidity (afternoons) %	40	32	27	21	18	20	25	28	31	31	38	40
Average Rainfall	5	5	5	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	2	5

Import Allowances:: a) 200 cigarettes or 25 cigars or 200gr of tobacco b) 1 lit of alcoholic beverage c) 1 lit of perfume or eau de cologne d) non-commercial articles up to the value of EGP 100
Contraband:: Firearms, narcotics, drugs, cotton, any kind of bird - live, frozen or stuffed

None.

Compulsary Vaccinations: Yellow fever certificate if arriving from infected areas. Exempt infants under 1 year. Air passengers in transit coming from infected countries or areas without a certificate will be detained within the airport until they resume their journey.
Recommended Immunisations: Diphtheria, Tetanus, Poliomyelitis, Hepatitis A, Typhoid. *Rabies, Hepatitis B. (*Applies to those travelling frequently or intending to spend extended time in that country)
Risks: Malaria, very limited risk exists from Jun-Oct in El Faiyum area (no reported cases since 1998).
Notes: During the Pilgrimage season passengers travelling from Saudi Arabia to or via Cairo will be subject to 5 days quarantine unless they are holding a certificate issued by either the Immigration Dept. or the Health Dept. at Dhahran (DMM), Jeddah (JED) or Riyadh (RUH) and stating that the bearer has not visited Jeddah or Makkah during the Haj season or they are travelling to Egypt via another country in which they stayed at least 5 days.

Passports must be valid for 6 months

The following DO NOT require a visa: 1) Nationals of Egypt 2) For tourist stays up to 3 months for nationals of Bahrain, Guinea, Hong Kong (SAR China), Jordan (with passport validity of 5 years), Kuwait, Korea (Rep of), Libya, Macao, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates & Yemen Republic

1) For nationals of UK, Ireland and EC countries no visa is needed, for a stay of 14 days or less, to visit the Gulf of Aqaba resorts (Sharm El Sheikh, Taba, Nuweiba Taba Heights and Dahab). If visitors wish to travel outside these villages, even for a trip to the desert, or to others parts in Sinai (including Ras Mohamed National Park, Mount Sinai and St Catherine's Monastery) and to the rest of Egypt, a full entry visa is required. If tourists are not sure of their itinerary in Egypt, it is advisable to obtain a full entry visa upon arrival to avoid any travel restrictions and the consequent inconvenience. 2) Nationals of the following countries require approval from Authorities in Cairo prior to issuing a visa: Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Burundi, Chad, Comoros, Djibouti Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Lebanon, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Moldova, Morocco, Myanmar, Nigeria, Niger, Phillippines, Pakistan, Palestine, Rwanda, Somalia, Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Thailand,

Embassy

Consulate of Egypt 2 Lowndes Street London, SW1X 9ET tel: +44 20 7235 9777 fax: +44 20 7235 5684 website: www.egyptianconsulate.co.uk email: info@egyptianconsulate.co.uk